SINGAPORE — Scottish actor Gerard Butler is known for his tough-guy roles, whether it’s leading a motley crew of warriors to battle an invading Persian army (300), trifling with London’s underworld (RocknRolla) or voicing an animated Viking leader dealing with dragons (How To Train Your Dragon).

But Butler also knows when to be the perfect gentleman, which is why he was asked to be the new face of Hugo Boss’ Boss Bottled fragrance. Mind you, the actor firmly believes every man should spritz on a fragrance to start the day off right.

“Most days, I put on a fragrance and it feels really good. It makes such a difference to how you feel about yourself, when you feel you smell nice, with something that’s really tailored to what you like and how you like to present yourself,” he said.

Q: Would you say you’re someone who responds well to wearing a fragrance?

A: Completely. Like the clothes you wear, I think it totally gives you a way of feeling (good) about yourself; the way you smell is a part of how confident you feel and how much you’re vibing with what’s around you. And the difference between a scent you like and how that draws you to a woman, and a scent that you don’t like and how that can definitely push you away. Without a doubt, fragrance is hugely important.

Q: What about a daily grooming regime? Is that important?

A: It’s very important. Nowadays, I’m pretty good with cleansing and using a good face cream and an eye cream — which surprises me!

Q: What would you say is your go-to style on a daily basis?

A: I love to wear a pair of cargo pants or just a good pair of jeans, my baseball boots and then a T-shirt or a sweater. But I also like to wear suits. I was a lawyer. I trained as a lawyer so I wore suits every day for years. And now, when I’m ... doing interviews around the world, I always like to put on a suit. It feels great to wear a suit. You stand straighter, you have a different deportment, you have a different confidence and air about yourself — and you feel sexy. It’s like a Scotsman wearing a kilt. A kilt to a Scotsman is what a suit is to the rest of the world.

Q: Have you ever worn a kilt on the red carpet?

A: I have — but I have to say, when you’re a leading man in a movie, I’d rather not attract too much attention. It’s better to be subtle on the red carpet — wear a striking suit but not something loud and in your face. That includes a kilt. A kilt is great but it’s so defining and most of the time that’s not really the best way to present yourself (on the red carpet). But when I did a premiere of Law Abiding Citizen in Scotland, all my family and friends were there so I wore a kilt and it was a lot of fun.

Q: Do you think it’s important to have strong men as role models?

A: I do. I’m fortunate that I come from a large Catholic family and it is a bit like the clan, so I grew up with all my uncles and great uncles around. That definitely helped me. But my dad wasn’t there and I’m sad about that and I often wish that he’d been around. I didn’t see him until I was 16. However, my mum met and married somebody else when I was 15 and they’ve been together ever since. TRANSCRIPT COURTESY OF HUGO BOSS

Boss Bottled Eau de Toilette retails from S$70 to S$193 at all department stores and perfumeries.